Egyptian Director Developing Anti-'American Sniper' Film
If you were concerned Hollywood may have gotten too pro-American recently with war movies, (see You won’t believe what Hollywood is saying about “American Sniper” and ’13 Hours’ Star Blasts ‘Anti-Military’ Critics for Politicizing the Film…) then this is your day. Egyptian Director Amr Salama is developing an anti-war movie tentatively called Iraqi Sniper to tell the story of the bad guy in American Sniper.
That's right, kids. He's making a movie to clap back at American Sniper.
In Clint Eastwood’s 2014 box-office smash American Sniper, Bradley Cooper starred as top U.S. marksman Chris Kyle. His chief antagonist in the film was a mysterious sniper on the side of the Iraqi insurgents who went by the name of Mustafa.
Not to be confused with Simba's fallen father, "Mufasa." Just as a common courtesy.
“He’s the hero in my film,” says Salama, who says he was incensed into making the film when he first saw American Sniper. “I hated it. That was my inspiration – I hated it so much that I wanted to work on a different version of that story.”
Hey, fair is fair. It's just that he's essentially hitting copy/paste then writing in all caps "AMERICA IS BAAAAAAAD!"
There was indeed a real-life top sniper fighting for the Iraqis, given the nickname Juba, whose exploits – thought by some to be hundreds of kills – were touted in a number of videos released between 2005 and 2007. There were rumors that he had even been an Olympic athlete at one point.
An olympic athlete like Bruce Jenner? Is Juba now "Jubalee"?
I'll let myself out.
“But I’m trying to make an anti-war film,” says Salama. “Whereas American Sniper was pro-war.”
There is no truth to the rumors that the 2018 Academy Awards have been cancelled after it was decided to just give Iraqi Sniper all of the awards.
Really, if this movie ever actually comes out, the culture war surrounding it is gonna be lit. So maybe in some ways this movie is worth more than our obvious jokes which mock it.
Side note: hopefully the film centers around the part where Juba (Mustafa) parts ways with his cranium. I'd pay a nickel to see that.
